Test 3 Flashcards
What were some important components of Hellenistic culture?
- Philosophical and political thinking
- The writing of history (library in Alexandria in Ptolemy’s kingdom)
- Alexandria was cosmopolitan city: cosmopolitan= citizen belonging to whole world or universe
- Theatre (Drama)
- A form of Greek that became international language of its day (Koine Greek), helped connect economies and spread Greek philosophy
- 3 King married into societies they ruled
- chattel slavery spread
Who was Epicurus, and what did he believe?
He was a philosopher whose philosophy was to have garden, invite women/slaves to think about what makes them happy (self was most imp thing)
Who was Chandragupta, and what did he do?
He founded and was the ruler of the Mauryan Empire (Largest south Asian empire) in Indus Valley. He wanted to be like Alexander the Great.
Who took over the Mauryan empire after Chandragupta died, and what were some characteristics of his regime?
Chandragupta passed the Mauryan empire down to his grandson Asoka.
Regime of Asoka:
- 100s of 1000s of me in army
- ruled almost entire South Asia
- faithful follower of Buddhism (bc of moment of realization, renounced violence)
- claimed to rule over kingdom following a set of moral regulations called Dharma
- issued decrees which were displayed on stone pillars and boulders throughout the empire
- mixed cultures in society
- we don’t know much about the Mauryan society
What was the kingdom of Bactria, and what were some of its accomplishments?
The Hellenistic kingdom of Bactria broke away from Seleucids, inhabited Gandhara region (Pakistan) and part of India.
- Bactrians are also called Indo-Greeks
- stabilized region, made trade easier
- created Silk Road
- Alexander’s children helped rule land
- Bridge between South Asia and Greek world of Meditteranean
What were the Hellenistic cities of South Asia like?
- Greeks planted crops familiar to them
- temples were suitable places for cultural assimilation
- cities and kings issued coins with Greek inscriptions/legends
- most men and women spoke and wrote some Greek
- had standard measurement/numbers
What was Mahayana Buddhism?
- created more diverse/pleasant idea of afterlife
- enlightened demigods who helped indivs obtain Nirvana were called Bodhisattvas
What was Buddhism like in 200 BCE?
- Buddhist monks followed commercial networks, spread words of Buddah
- Buddhist monks began to translate Buddhist texts into Chinese
- Buddhism was unable to dislodge Zoroastrianism from its dominance on Iranian plateau
- Buddhism was chief expansionist faith
Who were the Parthians?
Empire to east of Rome that stopped its expansion in that direction
- it’s people had moved south from present-day Turkmenistan
- social order was founded on nomadic pastoralism and a war capability based on technical advances in mounted horseback warfare
- roman emperors like Marcus Crassus and Mark Anthony tried to conquer arid lands east of Judea and Syria, but were stopped by the Parthians
What was the Silk Road?
- trade route between Far East and Middle East
- caravans, traders, and travelers went on it
- one of most profitable roads ever created
What was Chinese silk used for?
Was used as currency in China’s diplomatic and military activities, for writing, and clothing
What were the two main caravan cities and their characteristics?
Palmyra and Petra (in today’s Syria)
- emerged at endpoints of major trade routes, linked Meditteranean w silk and incense routes.
- resting places, places where trading groups assembled before journeys
- Petra facilitated movement of spices on spice/incense road
- Palmyra handled silk and other textiles (After Petra), marble city in desert
Who were the three generals of Alexander who took over when he died, and what did they do?
Antigonus - Greece/Asia Minor
Ptolemy- Egypt/Palestine
Selecus- Babylon
Spread Hellenistic culture
How was the Qin dynasty created?
Li Si (chief minister of Qin state) told e Zheng (future emperor) to take advantage of situation (disarray), Zhou state of Qin took over all other warring states
- “China” comes from word “Qin!
- Qin dynasty sometimes called first true dynasty
Who was emperor Zheng (Shi Huangdi) and how did he rule his empire?
Was emperor of Qin dynasty
- divided China into provinces called commanderies (jun), each w civilian and military governor and imperial inspector (all answered to emperor)
- created capital of China (Xianyang)
- made it so when he died, dynasty would continue
- brutal and strict leader suspicious of deceit/rebellion
- required adult males to register with imperial clerk (for army draft, taxes)
- improved writing and measurement system
- all roads in China lead to Xianyang
- compass, paper money, and paper were invented during Qin dynasty
Who was the emperor who ruled after (same as?) emperor Zheng?
Shi Huangdi. He…
- Expanded territory
- built roads into newly seized pastureland
- built massive defense wall along border (Great Wall) to keep nomadic tribes/barbarians out
- settled some thirty thousand colonists in the territory
- used army to seize their pastureland
- used diplomacy w nomads
- two emperors after him commit suicide from pressure, empire becomes weak, civil war happens
Who took control of China after the Qin Dynasty fell apart?
Commoner and former policeman Liu Bang proclaimed himself first Han emperor
- claimed Mandate of Heaven
- said Qin were evil
Who was Emperor Wu?
An emperor during the (former, western) Han dynasty.
- called martial emperor, but never went in battle
- followed Daoist principle of Wuwei (non interference), striving to remain aloof from day to day activities and let empire function on own
- still used strict penal code to eliminate powerful officials who got in way
What was Han China like during the reign of Emperor Wu?
- economic prosperity/expansion
- Royal/imperial fam and scholar elites led (idea from confucianism)
- institutions of learning were established, including imperial university
- ruling fam was organized
- paper and compass were improved, magnet created
What were the social and religious ideals of Han China?
- peasants were honored for productive labors while merchants were subject to a range of controls
- Han cities were organized according to their political function
- each part of society had purpose/function
- religion was new view of Confucianism that turned Confucius into lawgiver/demigod
- cluster of heavenly omens could mean emperor had lost the Mandate of Heaven
What was Pax Sinica in Han China?
“Years of peace”
- nomadic people (Xiongnu) were not a threat
- empire expanded to Korea, Vietnam, and Tibet
- Great Wall is expanded
Who was Wang Mang, and what did he do?
Former Han minister who took advantage of crisis in China (too much financial expenditure), said Han had lost Mandate of Heaven
- took over throne, established new dynasty
- wanted to change social fabric of society
- created harsher punishments and more work for everyone
- peasants revolted against him several times
- confiscated gold from wealthy landowners and merchants
- established communal plots whose crops would become tax surplus for state
- redistributed excess land among people
- allowed fams to work their own parcels of land
Wang Mang was eventually defeated by rebels (red eyebrows), eastern (later) Han dynasty emerged
What was the eastern Han dynasty like?
- capital was Luoyang
- hands off economic policy, decentralized regime
- large landowners and merchants amassed wealth/property
- trade flourished
- unbalanced wealth caused peasants (yellow turbans) to create millenarian movement (upheaval) against landowners bc they believed in Daoist future great peace
- agrarian conditions worsened, famine happened, “proved” emperors lost Mandate of Heaven
- economic collapse and internal wars resulted from peeps not paying taxes or doing labor
- three competing states eventually replaced eastern Han dynasty: Wei, Wu, and Shu
How did the Roman Empire start?
- Etruscans/Greeks settled in area of future Rome
- latins (Romans) come and eventually conquer Etruscans
Legend, Romulus and Remus raised by wolves, Remus dies, Romulus creates rome
What is the military of the Roman Empire like?
- Romans borrowed military ethos (and gods) from Greeks
- regime of training/discipline
- took conquered males
- annual spring campaigns in March (for war God Mars)
- savage mass punishments called decimations
- military is best way to raise personal status
What were the Punic Wars?
-Rome vs Carthage
Punic I: naval battle over island of Sicily
Punic II: Romans had to use 750,000 men to repel Hannibals 20,000 and war elephants
Punic III: Romans took war to enemy soil, winning decisive battle at Zama near Carthage. Used advantage of men, ships, and resources to end carthagian rule in western Meditteranean
What was the rubicon River?
River outside Rome. When armies visited rome, only leader and advisors could cross River (army had to stay on other side so not a threat)
Who was Scipio Africanus?
Ruler of Rome in 200s BCE
What happened in Rome during severe political crisis?
One man chosen (out of retirement) dictator, whose words (dicta) were law and who held absolute power over state for 6 months
In normal gov, citizens elect officials of state
Who was sparticus?
A slave/gladiator who led slave revolt against Rome
-was defeated by Marcus Licinius Crassus who left retirement
What happened after Marcus Licinius Crassus defeated Sparticus?
Marcus Licinius Crassus, Gneus Pompey, and Julius Caesar (all former generals) ruled republic together.
- Pantheons defeated Marcus’s area
- Pompey started rumor about Caesar and tries to defeat him but fails
- Caesar crossed rubicon, defeated Pompey
What did Julius Caesar do?
- added July to calendar
- called himself emperor, then decided he was a god
- is stabbed in ides of March by 12 followers (“you too Brutus?”)
Who was Octavian Augustus Caesar?
Julius’s adopted son, became ruler of Roman Empire
- first roman emperor
- rule marked beginning of Pax Romana (roman peace)
- reunited empire
- said he is moral man
- month August is named after him
Who were some emperors who ruled after Augustus?
Tiberius= good Caligula= bad, killed baby Claudius= good Nero= bad, killed mom, burned Rome
How did roman emperors rule?
- empire was under administration of central government
- provincial governors had to depend on local help (slaves and freedmen)
- at times, provincial governors had to rely on private companies (mercenaries) as with the collection of imperial taxes
- emperor professionalized army and presented himself as victorious battlefield commander
What was roman family life like?
- roman law gave husbands and dads authority over fam
- roman women exercise much greater freedom and control over wealth and property (in relation to other societies)
- fam was placed at foundation of roman social order
- some women, usually elites, were educated
- family name was important
- slaves were dependent on master (for protection as well as necessities)
What was the city of Rome like?
- over 1 million citizens (largest city in world, conquered people’s were assimilated)
- emperor ensured inhabitants of Rome had basic food and water supplies
- aqueducts for water (from mountains)
- Rome was a disease-ridden environment
- living conditions were often appalling
- poor citizens went into military to get better life
- Romans created concrete and used marble
What were some of the roman Empires economic activities?
- a steady expansion of the amount of land under cultivation
- the establishment of a road network that collaborated with sea routes
- common currency
- large mining operations supported massive coinage (marble)
- extension of the idea of private ownership of land and other property
- chattel slavery
What were the tree types of roman laws?
Natural laws- Gods
Civil laws- how man governs himself
International laws- how states act towards each other
What were mass entertainment and art like in Rome?
- emperor used mass entertainment to gain favor of public
- gladiators (in coliseum) fought to death (smaller coliseums were in cities besides Rome)
- Romans invented the arch and concrete
Why did the Roman Empire fall apart?
- rise of Christianity
- barbarians
- civil wars (ineffective senate)
- population grew, resources fell
- border of empire were overextended
In 64 years, the Roman Empire had 31 emperors!
Who was Diocletian?
Emperor of Rome who…
- stabilized empire
- fixed prices of food and fixed wages
- stabilized currency
- reformed tax system
-split empire into east and west bc he thought one man couldn’t rule it all
What happened after Diocletian split the Roman Empire into east and west sections?
- two rulers ruled each section w Dio as overall leader
- Rome became insignificant, capital of empire was moved to Ravenna in west, Byzantium in east
Who were the Huns?
Barbarians who were vicious, cruel fighters. Their leader was Attila the Hun. He and the Huns…
- ruled hunnic empire
- sacked Rome multiple times
- demanded gold as tribute from Rome to prevent sacking
- Attila died on wedding day, Huns were dismantled
Who we Aleric II, the Visigoths, and the Oatrogoths?
Barbarians (Aleric II was leader) who…
- negotiated with Roman Empire
- issued a simplified code or laws that served a non-imperial Rome
- lived outside Rome, protected it
- broke negotiation bc roman emperor did not help them during famine
What area two characteristics of barbarian tribes?
- landowners paid barbarian tribes to protect their territories and negotiated w them
- sacking Rome gave barbarian tribes respect
Who was the last emperor of Rome?
Romulus Augustus was last emperor (named after legendary founder and after first roman emperor). While he was ruling, King odacer of the Visigoths sacked Rome, officially ending the Roman Empire
